There's too much snow!

[quads]

I was able to get out into the woods, and back, but just barely. All the way was only moving at a snail's pace. I even melted a little plastic near the muffler on my ATV from working her kind of hard. There's no way I will be able to pull my wood trailer, even empty. I might be able to cut some wood, but not haul it up. I'll have more piled out there. The third year in a row that this has happened, too much snow right away in the beginning of December and then I can't cut any wood. And one thing about this area is that after it snows, it gets quite cold and then the snow won't pack/settle. It turns to a sugar-like texture that just slithers around under your wheels. Great for snowmobiling, bad for my wood cuttin' addiction.


Not exactly stuck, more of a controlled creeping.

The deer have been hittin' the turnip patch pretty hard. Can't tell from this picture, but they've got the far end dug down to the dirt. Should have planted turnips on the trails and maybe the deer would have plowed the snow off!

Skidplate dragging and wheels spinning all the way.

The thing about raspberries and hazelnuts is that in the summer the thick leaves and brush hide the available wood on the ground. Then in the winter the snow sticks to the brush and it still hides the wood!

This tree was going to be my next firewood target. I can get to it, kind of, and I can see it above the snow-cover,so maybe soon.

Nothing special about this picture, I just thought it was pretty. A future generation of white pine covered in snow.

 

[thewoodlands]

Great pictures quad, how much snow do you have?

Zap

 

[quads]

About a foot, maybe 14 inches. Freezing rain/drizzle forecast for tonight and actually that might be good for getting out into the woods. It will either settle the snow a little, put a crust on it, or both.

 

[SolarAndWood]

Time for a blade on the front of the atv and maybe some chains?

 

[skinnykid]

Nice pics, you have the right quad for the job. Mine is a 500, I would like to get the 800 for jobs like that. Plus I plow with my Sportsman. I am happy with mine but would love the extra power and fuel injection. Mine has been through hell and back but still keeps on going. Best Atv brand i have found so far.

 

[John the Painter]

Time to upgrade to a tractor. ;-)

 

[quads]

Got lots of tractors on the farm, but the trails in the woods are all planted as wildlife food plots, so I try to stay on the wheel tracks with the ATV. The tractors are too hard on the plants, and many of the trails are too narrow to get a tractor through them anyway. Times like this make me wish I had kept a snowmobile, then I could pack the trails with that.

That ATV is only a 300cc. I used to have a 500cc Sportsman, with a snowplow, that I traded in with 10,000+ miles on it. Plowed a lot of snow with it over the years. I opted not to put a snowplow on the 300cc Hawkeye and got a snowblower instead. Even so, the snowplow would be hard on the crops planted down the trails. I have a 2wd ATV (Trailboss) that I use on the farm and I have tire chains on that. It does almost as good with chains and 2wd as the 4wd does without chains. I even had a snowplow on the 2wd at one time.

 

[sedanman]

Good excuse to get a snowmobile and "groom" your trail.

 

[quads]

I sold the last snowmobile a few years ago (of course the year after that it started to snow in the winter again). I have since been able to pack the trails down and hooked up the old snowmobile cutter behind my ATV. If need be, my buddies all have snowmobiles yet, so could get one of them to pack the trails. But, if that's the case the snow is probably too deep for me to cut wood.

 

[maplewood]

I sold the last snowmobile a few years ago (of course the year after that it started to snow in the winter again). I have since been able to pack the trails down and hooked up the old snowmobile cutter behind my ATV. If need be, my buddies all have snowmobiles yet, so could get one of them to pack the trails. But, if that's the case the snow is probably too deep for me to cut wood.

In Newfoundland, they are experts at hauling wood with snow mobiles. I've seen hundreds out on trails, hauling fire wood trailers, pulling out next year's wood. It's quite an operation.

Sorry your addiction is on hold until spring.
Thanks for the pictures.

 

[Lanningjw]

You did a really nice job on the pictures, thanks for sharing them. I just love being ou tin the woods running around. You should buy a sled. Some many good deals on used ones because it doesnt snow enough to use them. CL in Minneapolis always has alot for sale. We use to use a Polaris 500 ATV with the 48 inch plow, but I thought it was more of a toy trying to move alot of snow. Maybe if I used the bigger blade it would be more effective. Picked up a John D 1130 30 inch snow blower for the driveway and it is doing a real nice job.

See ya,

 

[quads]

I was out there and cut some wood yesterday, and even managed to haul it. So, unless we get more snow, which is a distinct possibility of course, I won't have to wait until Spring. I might be out there again today too. Here's my picture thread from yesterday: https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/viewthread/48094